Conquistadors with Michael Wood"The Fall of the Aztecs"
The first program tells the story of the conquest in 1519-21 of the Aztec empire in Mexico by Hernan Cortes and 500 Spanish conquistadors. Michael Wood follows the path of gambler and womanizer Cortes from his home in Spain to the Mayan pyramids on the shores of the Yucatan, on through the tropical forests of Tabasco to the snow-capped volcanoes of Mexico. Trekking over the mountains in torrential storms, Wood considers how a small band of Spanish adventurers could overthrow an empire of millions, and why the Aztec ruler Montezuma could have believed the Spanish were gods. D

6:00 pm

Conquistadors with Michael Wood"The Conquest of the Incas"
Six years after the fall of Mexico, the conquistador Francisco Pizarro, exploring south of the equator, uncovers another civilization unknown to the European world: the empire of the Incas, which extended 3,000 miles from Ecuador to Chile. Michael Wood recounts Pizarro's daring march into Peru with fewer than 200 men and tells the almost incredible tale of his capture of the Inca Atuahuallpa and his promise to ransom himself with a roomful of gold. Traveling across the Peruvian desert along ancient Inca roads, Wood climbs the Andes with a train of llamas, continues to the ancient city of Cuzco, the Incas' "navel of the earth," where massive Inca buildings still stand, and to the stupendous Sacred Valley ruins, including Macchu Picchu. D

7:00 pm

Earth Songs
Inspired by decades of National Geographic specials, the BBC Planet Earth series, and the beauty of our terrestrial home, EARTH SONGS gently guides the viewer through a journey of ageless wisdom, inspiring poetry and stunning footage of Mother Earth. For more than two years, filmmaker Brian Luke Seaward traveled to many of the world's most pristine locations -- Patagonia (Chile), the Caribbean, Iceland, the Canadian Rockies, Hawaii, Greenland, Alaska, Peru and New Zealand - capturing the Earth's beauty in ways that are rarely seen. Set to a musical score performed by Grammy-nominated artists - including Michael Hoppe, Brian Keane, Secret Garden, Keola Beamer, Zach Bergen, Min TZe Wu and Nigel Holton - the program celebrates the planet's scenic beauty and precious wildlife. D

Conquistadors with Michael Wood"The Conquest of the Incas"
Six years after the fall of Mexico, the conquistador Francisco Pizarro, exploring south of the equator, uncovers another civilization unknown to the European world: the empire of the Incas, which extended 3,000 miles from Ecuador to Chile. Michael Wood recounts Pizarro's daring march into Peru with fewer than 200 men and tells the almost incredible tale of his capture of the Inca Atuahuallpa and his promise to ransom himself with a roomful of gold. Traveling across the Peruvian desert along ancient Inca roads, Wood climbs the Andes with a train of llamas, continues to the ancient city of Cuzco, the Incas' "navel of the earth," where massive Inca buildings still stand, and to the stupendous Sacred Valley ruins, including Macchu Picchu. D